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American Board of Conmissinners 
for Foreign Missinus 


Room 102 Congregational House, Boston 


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A Kerman mi Tithes. 


By Buinp Houannes, of Shepik, Eastern ‘Turkey. 


[Blind Hohannes, (John, sometimes called 
“John Concordance,” because of his great knowl- 
edge of the Scriptures) graduated some years ago 
from the Theological Seminary at Harpoot, East- 
ern Turkey, and was afterwards stationed as 
preacher at Shepik, a small and very poor village 
not far from Arabkir. There he exerted a most 
happy influence, and there he first preached his 
sermon on tithes. Miss West, who heard him 
preach afterwards on the subject at Harpoot, sent 
an abstract of the discourse for the Missionary 
Herald, where it was published in October, 1868. 
It was reprinted in the Christian Work, a stand- 
ard English publication, with the suggestion that 
it should be circulated by hundreds of thousands 
among Christians of England, was translated into 
Welch, has been repeated in India, and China, 
and Africa, exciting no little interest, and is now 
issued in a convenient form for circulation, in con- 
sequence of a recent call for copies. 


Miss West remarks: ‘‘It is difficult to do jus- 
tice to a scene and asermon so unique. When 
the sightless man was led up into the pulpit, his 
appearance was anything but attractive; but he 
had a message from the Lord of Hosts, and well 
did he deliver it.” ‘‘ The blindness of the preacher 
added to the impression. Saying, ‘ We will read’ 
such a chapter, or hymn, he would repeat the 
same, word for word; and when he called upon 
the people to read, it was for their sake rather 
than his own.”’| 


The preacher commenced his discourse by 
repeating that striking passage in Malachi: 
“Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed 
me: But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? 
In tithes and offerings,” etc. He then, in few 
words, told us that he proposed to show from the 
Word of God, that the giving of a tenth to the 
Lord was a primitive institution, attended with 
great benefits and blessings to the givers, and 
perpetuated and enforced under the new dispensa- 
tion no less than the old. 

“Open your Bibles,” he said, “at the 14th 
chapter of Genesis, and let some one read the 
18th and 20th verses.” Bibles were instantly 
opened all over the house, and the passage read, 
in clear tones, by one of the congregation. 


3 


“Abraham gave tithes to Melchizedek,” said 
the preacher, “more than four hundred years 
before the giving of the law to Moses : — Abra- 
ham, ‘the father of the faithful,’ whose children 
the Jews gloried in being, — Abraham, whom 
even Moslems honor and call ‘ the blessed.’” 

“ Now turn to the 28th chapter and read the 
2oth, 21st, and 22d verses.” Jacob’s vow was 
read, concluding with the words: ‘“ And of all 
that thou shalt give me, I will surely give the 
tenth to thee.” He then rapidly drew the con- 
trast between Jacob’s gozmg to Padan-aram — 
alone, and in utter destitution —and the return, 
with his flocks and herds, and camels, men-ser- . 
vants and maid-servants; for the man had in- 
creased exceedingly, in spite of the covetousness 
of. Laban. “And now,” he said, ‘open at the 
27th of Leviticus, and read the 30th verse. ‘And 
all the “the of the land zs the Lord’s,’”’ repeated 
the preacher: ‘‘nine-tenths for yourselves, but 
one-tenth ‘is holy unto the Lord.’ Open at 
Numbers 18th, and read the 2oth, 21st, 26th, 28th 
and 29th verses.” This was done, and then Ho- 
hannes briefly commented upon each verse. He 
said the Levites, who ministered in the house of 
the Lord, were to have no part or inheritance in 
-the Zand, for the é&thes of the people were to be 
their inheritance ; and of these tithes, ey were 


4 


to offer a ¢exth to the Lord, ‘‘ even of all the dest 
thereof!” “Read Deut. 14th, 22d; and 26th, 
12th. See the abundant provision made, not 
only for the Levites, but also for the ‘stranger, 
the fatherless and the widow.’ Read also 2d 
Chron. 31: 4-10, where the people are described 
as obeying the command of God, and bringing in 
‘abundantly’ of the ‘increase of the land.’ And 
the chief priest answered king Hezekiah, when 
he questioned him concerning the ‘heaps,’ — 
‘Since the people began to bring the offerings 
into the house of the Lord, we have had enough 
to eat, and have left plenty; for the Lord hath 
blessed his people ; and that which is left is this 
great store.’ 

“Now read Nehemiah 13: 1oth, 13th, and 14th 
verses. Mark the contrast! The people no longer 
gave tithes ; the house of the Lord was dese- 
crated, and the Levites had forsaken their sacred 
office, and ‘fled, every one to Ais ows FIELD!’ 
And now,” said the preacher, “‘ we will turn to the 
new dispensation. Open at the 23d of Matthew 
and read the 23d verse: ‘These ought ye to have 
done, and zo¢t to leave the other undone,’ are our 
blessed Saviour’s words to the Scribes and Phari- 
sees. Ye do well to pay “thes, —it is your duty, 
—hbut ye ought also to do judgment, mercy and 
faith, Now turn to, Luke 11: 42. ‘Wo unto 


5 


you Pharisees, for ye tithe . . . all manner of 
herbs, and pass over judgment and the love of 
God: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave 
the other undone.’ Read Luke 3: 7-12. ‘Bring 
forth fruits worthy of repentance,’” repeated the 
preacher. ‘“‘John the Baptist was a connecting 
link between the Jewish and the Gospel dispen- 
sations, and he spake as he was moved by the 
Spirit of God, —‘ Now also is the axe laid at the 
root of the tree.’ What tree? It was nothing 
less than the tree —the root—of self and selfsh- 
ness! Nhat this good fruit is he tells us in the 
Iith verse: ‘Ile that hath two coats, let him im- 
part to him that hath none; and he that hath 
meat (food), let him do likewise.’ Where now 
remains the desi ?”” he exclaimed. ‘‘ Under the 
new dispensation, not one tenth merely, but one 
HALF is required!” (At this announcement there 
was an evident sensation in the audience ; many 
a face lighted up with a smile, as the electric cur- 
rent shot through the assembly). 

The preacher continued: ‘f Read now the 6th 
of Luke, 38th verse. ‘Give, and it shall be given 
unto you.’ Give, and you shall have the where- 
withal to give! Shut your hand and your heart, 
and you shut the windows of heaven; you keep 
back the blessing of God. See what Christ says 
in Luke 12: 33. ‘Sell that ye have and give 


Orv 


alms,’ &c., which means — consider yourselves as 
stewards of God’s grace on the earth; seeking 
your inheritance in the world to come. You are 
to sct light store by your earthly possessions, and 
lay up treasure in heaven. Now read Luke 14: 
33.’ Slowly and solemnly the preacher repeated 
the words of the Master,— ‘‘‘ So likewise, whoso- 
ever he be of you that forsaketh not ALL that he 
hath, he CANNOT be my disciple!’ Ah, my 
brethren,” he said, ‘fit is not mercly a Zenth, or 
even a half of our worldly possessions that Christ 
claims, z¢ zs our ALLL! Think upon the mearsing 
of those words. It is thus He speaks to you: 
‘If you wish to be my disciple, you must cout 
the cost! You cannot serve /wo masters. You 
must give up everything that the children of this 
world seek after. You must hold yourselves aloof 
from your earthly possessions, (the Armenian 
version of the text quoted from Luke 14: 33), 
holding to them /oose/y, setting your affections on 
things above. Your comfort, pleasure, honor, 
ease, yea, your very life, you must esteem as soth- 
ig in comparison with my service! And in thus 
losing a// you will find ALL, and that forever.’ 
“Open your Bibles at Matthew 19: 29, and 
Mark 10: 29. and the glorious promise to those 
who truly ‘forsake all’ for Christ and his cause. 
Sce,” exclaimed Hohannes, after solemnly repeat- 


ing the passage, ‘‘see how rich the reward! A 
hundred-fold in this life, and Ze everlasting 
beside’! Now open at Luke roth, read from the 
2d to the roth verse. Note the words of Zac- 
cheus: ‘The half of my goods I give to the poor’ 
—and mark the answer of our Saviour. But 
what say you? Is salvation to be bought wits 
money? Weall know that it is ‘without money, 
without price.’ Why then this blessing upon 
Zaccheus?” ‘ Because,’’ answered one of the 
congregation, ‘the gzvzzg was the fruit of his 
jaith {” “Yes,” rejoined the preacher, “ Zac- 
cheus brought forth fruit worthy of true repent- 
ance, and immediately received the promised 
blessing. 
* Now let me tell you a story. When I was in 
the class in sermonizing, in the seminary, our 
teacher was very anxious that we who were soon 
to go forth as preachers, and perhaps become pas- 
tors, should work upon right principles ; and he 
often talked to us of our duty, as leaders, to teach 
the people to do for themselves. He somctimes 
told us of places where much money (of the 
3oard) had been expended by missionaries, and 
little real good accomplished, because the people 
had not been taught to give for Christ’s cause. 
‘In one little village,’ he said, ‘40,000 piasters of 
the Board’s money was spent, the people giving 


only 50 piasters during thirteen years! And the 
work in that place amounts to nothing, to-day, in 
consequence of this unwise course.’ 

“Tt so happened, that when my course of study 
was finished, I was appointed to that village. It 
was the last place I should have chosen. I had 
no desire to go to that field, but God had so 
ordered, and I went. ‘The missionaries told me 
that my wages would be 1,500 piasters per year,* 
of which the people were to raise 600 piasters ; 
and before I left, one of them took me aside, and 
counselled me to make it as easy for the pcople as 
possible, by eating at their houses, etc., etc., be- 
cause it would come hard to them at fst to do so 
much. Soon after I went there, a neighboring 
pastor came over to the village, and we held a 
meeting with the brethren. We talked about my 
support, and it seemed that they had, with much 
difficulty, subscribed 500 piasters per year. I told 
them the missionaries had said they would raise 
600. ‘ ever!’ they exclaimed, ‘ we cannot raise 
another Zara!’ And pastor M. said it was im- 
possible—they were too poor. ‘Where then 
shall I get my other hundred?’ I asked. ‘We 
will help you from our place,’ he answered. 

“But my mind was not at rest. That night I 
thought much on the subject. I said to myself — 


* $60. The piaster is about four cents. 


9 


‘Suppose the American Board should some day 
withdraw its support from this and other feeble 
churches, what will become of them?’ And I 
prayed: ‘O, Thou who knowest all things, and 
with whom are all plans, show thy ignorant ser- 
vant how thy kingdom can best be established in 
this land.’ And it seemed to me that a voice said, 
in my soul— ‘It can be done, dy giving one in 
every ten!’ When I thought it over, it occurred 
to me to test it firstin my own case. One tenth 
of my I,500 per year would be 150 piasters. ‘No!’ 
I said, ‘I can’t give as much as that; I should 
suffer for it.” But when I came to take it out of 
every month’s allowance it did not seem so much. 
‘One tenth of my 125 per month, will be 12 1-2 
piasters ; Zcaz doit,’ I said, ‘and JZ wil/, even if 
I do have to pinch a little?’ It happened that 
pastor visited us about that time, and I laid 
the subject before him. ‘It can be done,’ he said, 
‘and it must be. I will give a tenth of my salary.’ 
And so said preacher , who also came over. 
‘Well, then,’ I said, ‘do you think it will do for 
me to lay it before the brethren?’ ‘ Yes,’ they 
replied, ‘it is the best thing you can do.’ So I 
prepared myself and preached to the people on 
the next Sabbath. The Lord blessed his own 
word. They accepted it, and came together to be 


t+ Hohannes had no family to support. 


IO 


‘written’ for their tithes. When we made a 
rough estimate it appeared that their ¢ez¢hs would 
amount to more than my entire salary! ‘ Why, 
how is this?’ they all said; ‘it was so hard be- 
fore, but now it comes very easy, and is truly 
pleasant.’ 

‘‘ Now, to show you how God blessed that little 
flock, I will mention one case. ‘There was one of 
the brethren who had a vegetable garden, which 
the Turkish official, in writing down the taxes, 
had estimated at goo piasters (for that year’s 
produce), taxing him go piasters. Others said it 
was too much ; it would not produce that amount. 
But mark the fulfillment of the promise in Mal- 
achi lii: 10. That brother sold 3000 piasters 
worth of vegetables, besides what was eaten by a 
household of 32 persons, and given away — 
amounting to full 3,000 more. Others were also 
blessed, and all acknowledged that they had never 
known a year of such prosperity. The people not 
only supported their preacher and school-teacher, 
but also paid over 2,000 piasters for other pur- 
poses.” 

The preacher was about to close his discourse, 
when a member of the congregation arose, and 
asked permission to say a few words. “I have 
learned,” he said, “ from one of the missionaries, 
another truth which has great weight in this giv- 


iba 


ing of one tenth of our income to the Lord. Un- 
der the old dispensation, the Jews were only 
required to care for their own nation, but under 
the new dispensation the command is, ‘ Go ye into 
all the world, and preach the gospel to every 
creature!’ Therefore a ¢evth is not enough for 
Christians to give.” To this the preacher re- 
sponded: “A ¢enth is the very least that a disci- 
ple of Christ can give. Over and above that, he 
should give as God prospers him.” ‘‘ And now,” 
he added, “‘let us seek the aid of the Holy Spirit, 
that we, and all our offerings, may find acceptance 
before God.” 


NovE.—Ina sermon preached by President 
I. D. Griffin, D. D., before the American Board, 
in 1826, the following description is given of the 
call for benevolence which God presented to the 


ancient Hebrews: 


“In the first place, they were to devote the 
first fruits of their fields and of their flocks ; in 
the second place, they were to give to the Levites 
a tenth of all the products of both; in the third 
place, they were to consume another tenth in 
charity feasts with the Levites and the poor; in 
the fourth place, they were to offer mary exper. 


12 


sive sacrifices, some fixed by law and others vol- 
untary. These four items cannot be reckoned at 
less than three tenths of their income. In the 
fifth place, the many contributions demanded for 
the poor (some fixed by law and others voluntary), 
together with all that was required for hospital- 
ity, are moderately estimated at another tenth. 
Indeed under the pressure of all these laws, a 
conscientious and liberal Hebrew would hardly 
get through the year without parting with one 
half of his income. This page God wrote and 
hung out of heaven, and retired, leaving men to 
follow their own judgment and inclination to the 
end of the world. In the day when Ao/iness to 
the Lord shall be written on all the possessions 
of men, this page will be read and better under- 
stood. Then a law which has slept through so 
many ages will be revived again, and holy men 
will feel it a privilege to give something like four 
tenths or one half of their income to God.” 


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